72 SBC 240Z Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I know I don't post much on here and my nissan history isn't known to anyone but, before my current username (forgot my old one so had to create new one) I had been on here for about five or six years. For the past couple years I've owned a '89 S13, '79 S130 and my pride '72 SBC S30. Since I've had a drivers license I've always owned nissans and I love them to death but the problems that come with owning these older vehicles combined with everything else going on my life currently has me thinking that for the time being I should let them go. I've already sold my S13, my S130 I'm finishing up the bodywork and my V8 Z is just about finished save for the tachometer and painting the hood. I guess the biggest deciding factor is that money is tight and I've recently gone back to school so between that, work and errands I'm driving upwards of 65miles a day. On top of that we have a baby due in January and the only family car we have is the altima. I know there's several other guys in similar positions as me. The scary thing is that this decision isn't bothering me much and I don't know if that means I don't care about the cars anymore or if I'm just growing up and I realize the responsible decision is to ditch the problematic 40 year gas guzzler in favor of a safer, 4 dr, 4cyl. I think for the S130 I'm going to try and get in the $1500 range, full interior, good running engine with fresh gaskets, and fresh paint. For the V8 Z I'm thinking $3800ish, I'm not sure if that's too much or too little and that's kind of why I came on here. I don't want to be greedy but with a baby on the way I can use as much money as I can get. Plus whatever I sell the Z's for is going to go towards a newer car but I'm hoping to have a little cash leftover to put in savings. When I get home I'll post some pictures of the V8 Z so maybe you guys can tell me where I stand on my pricing. I'd hate to let the cars go because I'm afraid that by the time I can get another one in the future they'll all be rusted out in the southeast haha. In the coming months I should be in the air force so hopefully I'll get to go somewhere in the midwest in the future and get a nice rust free S30, all in due time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aarang Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Life changes.....you may regret getting rid of all the Z's. I've found with going to school and having kids my Z's are one of the things that helped me keep my sanity. If you have the space, storing a Z for a while is no big deal. It will sit and wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Storage would be an issue mostly because as sad this sounds I can't trust anyone on my side of the family and her side of the family wouldn't be bothered in helping me with this issue, her side of the family sees it as an old car that should just go to the junkyard because it's old. Basically money is tight because a series of screw overs I recieved from various people. I was supporting my little brother, my girlfriend, and myself this time last year, my brother was deep in debt with me over loaned money, rent, gas, groceries, etc so one day while I was at work he just up and moved out with no intention of paying me back, also stole a good bit of my tools and other things from the house. Then when my girlfriend found out she was prego she up and quit her job without consulting me. That left me paying all the bills and supporting the two of us. We decided to rent out the two spare bedrooms we had, we ended up with two college girls who upon first impression seemed like responsible people, we later found out otherwise. The first week they were in our house they had two parties with over a dozen or so people, I woke up to find my entire kitchen trashed and the house in general disarray. The first month they were there they more than tripled our power bill, were paying rent two or three weeks late, keeping us up all night, etc, We got rid of them and realized quickly that with my girlfriend out of work and me in school all day that we couldn't keep living there much longer. We first went to my parents about staying there while I was in school. After all I felt we were doing the right thing, focusing on school, getting in the air force, etc everything I need to do to support a family in the future. Well they basically said they had a major problem with us not being married yet (which is going to happen anyway but right now good grades and a reliable mode of transportation is priority) and they directed me to a homeless shelter, seriously. We then went to her mom which was fine with us staying there while I was in school, the rent at first was suppose to be pretty reasonable but as soon as our stuff got moved in the rent doubled and on top of that I'm spending a ton in gas because of how far we are from the school. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly family will screw you over. I'm 24 now and have been supporting myself since I was 17, I've always held a full time job and have always helped out my family in any way possible but now that I could a little help I'm told to go to a friggin homeless shelter (my stepmoms idead btw). Meanwhile my drug addict brother is 22 living at home being supported by them, my step sister lived at home until 25, but I guess they want to help the helpless first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Oh, to add insult to injury, my dad sad "hey if you can't take Rex (german shepherd in my sig) I'll take him from you, goodluck". If only I had a little less self control I tell ya Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two80z4me Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Life can be a *****, it's never going to be fair, or fair in the eyes of the one at the bottom. Take your dog, and your car. I have a fully grown german shepard and a boston terrier and my z is my only car, the fit in there happily, hangs his head out the window and could care less about having 30sq ft to move around in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RB240zDET Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Man sorry to hear about your tough times. I also have a shepherd, although he is a white German Shepherd and his name is also Rex. Small world. Best of luck with whatever you decide to do. I have had to sell my Z's before and honestly you will someday get another one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Thanks for the kind word guys. I think I really am set on selling the Z though, I think if I can get anywhere near $3800 then I can possibly get a decent little civic and get like 35mpg. I'm really kind of worried because I don't know if the Z's fuel gauge is reading wrong or what but I put $25 in it, drove across town and back (roughly 30miles round trip) and now it's on E. I have no fuel leaks, it's not running rich, and I was just cruising not even getting on it but I think 3.54 gear with a three speed tranny is destroying any potential 20ish mpgs. Does anyone know from experience if we live in base housing if they'll let us keep Rex? Oh and for the record, I didn't originally drop out because I was lazy or anything, when my dad met my stepmom she decided she didn't want his kids living with them, only her daughter, so at age 16 I was out on my own working full time (gotta love family). Focused on school right now, straight A's and only two more months of school left. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 (edited) Okay, this weekend I will be painting the hood either black or white to match the car. I have all four matching wheels but the rears have slicks on them so I'll need to take care of that. 4 bolt main SBC 350 with fresh gaskets, holley 4bbl, hooker super competition headers, dual exhaust with super traps, TH350 freshly rebuilt with TCI converter. The car runs great and starts right up. The body is straight and rust free, the paint is new, the interior is a bit of a problem though, I'm missing the center console and the front carpeting and the dash is cracked. What I did about the center console was I got some carpeting to match the factory stuff and I cut it out to lay over the transmission tunnel it actually looks pretty good. I painted the floorboards black and got some nice black floor mats so I don't see that as too big of an issue and if the dash turns out to be a real problem I'll pull it out and fiberglass it. I've also been going through and cleaning up all the wiring, wrapping it in electrical tape or loom and fastening it to the body, I don't have any engine bay shots but it's satin black with a black engine, chrome valve covers and air cleaner. I'm trying my best not to invest anymore money that I don't have so I'd rather come down on the price than risk investing more and not being able to sell it. What do you guys think though? $3800? $3500? or am I way too high? Oh yeah, I do have the bumpers, and the car has brand new windshield and all the rubber has been replaced too. Edited October 13, 2011 by 72 SBC 240Z Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
280zex Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Dang wish I was closer. I gota 1998 toyota corolla, 4 door, 90,000 miles, 1 owner, Id trade with ya, but alas I live in Seattle... I learned long ago all the rules change in life when involving family/money. They just dont mix. Keep your chin up, and your eyes on the prize. One day you will have another Z. I know. My past sounds like yours except I was on my own at 15(abandoned). Thats almost 30 yeaars ago. I almost had life eat me up, but I kept my eye on the prize and now have a good life,woman,job,Z=perfect Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 Thanks man, I appreciate all the kind words. As soon as we found out she was pregnant I went and got my transcript to go back to school and told them I would do whatever it took to be done by Christmas since the baby is due in January and that's exactly what I'm doing. I've knocked out five classes so far and have had 93s in two of them and 100s in the others. All the other kids I'm in class with act like school doesn't matter and I wish so much I could knock some sense in them. I chose the Air Force because I have had several co-workers and family members that were in and the one thing they all regret about the air force is getting out. I feel that the usaf is the best decision for a career and I'm trying to think about three people's well being instead of just my own now. I look at it like this I guess, it sucks having to get rid of stuff I've worked so hard for but it would suck even more trying to raise a child working at a dead end job with no future. We're having a girl btw, god help me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyrus Posted October 16, 2011 Share Posted October 16, 2011 I am sorry for the pain. I think it is because your order of things. Airforce, then car, then wife, then baby would make you life easier. But it sounds like you are manning up and got your head on straight. Do what is right, not easy, and you sir will have to world by the tail in due time. CHeers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 16, 2011 Author Share Posted October 16, 2011 I posted the car on Craigslist and to be honest I expected it to sell very quickly. I figured how else are you going to go fast in a classic car with new paint for $3000? It's been a week now and I have only had three emails about the car. I haven't even gotten the "hey dude I'll trade you my 1988 honda accord with faded paint and musty interior" or the "I've got $800 cash in hand, let me know when I can pick it up". I know gas is pricey and blah blah blah but I still see people driving around in land rovers and titans getting 10mpg so I dunno. I've been steady working on the car all weekend with my girlfriend, we polished the wheels, repainted the hatch and roof, painted the hood flat black, cleaned up the rest of the engine wiring, undercoated the whole underside of the car. As it sits the biggest problem the car has is the transmission pan is leaking and after searching the internet for awhile it seems that it's a losing battle with TH350 and leaks. So, here are some new pictures we took this afternoon, am I crazy for wanting $3000 for this or does that seem decent to you guys? I know out west they're a lot more common but in Pensacola I have only seen two other Z's period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zohanisback Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 Totally depends on demand and popular thought in an area. Out west here, $3500 for a SBC V8 is about right, but most have 4 or 5 speeds in them. A three speed definitely detracts from it though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 17, 2011 Author Share Posted October 17, 2011 Yeah I've already dropped the price to $3000 but for me to go any lower the potential buyer would have to say that they would have no problem taking care of a few loose ends left. I mean if I go down to $2400, well let's just say the buyer better throw in some petroleum jelly while he's at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72 SBC 240Z Posted October 19, 2011 Author Share Posted October 19, 2011 Down to $2450 or $2000 plus trade for firearm on craigslist, still no emails bah, really need this sold bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RB240zDET Posted October 19, 2011 Share Posted October 19, 2011 If I didn't just start my RB25DET swap in my caged 280z I would be all over your 240z. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tibby Posted October 19, 2011 Share Posted October 19, 2011 If my Z32 was gone I'd take this in a heart beat. Keep at it. Someone will pick it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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